A Little Vanlife Privacy

Fine. I get the irony. I’m pretty public with this blog, let alone my posts on Twitter, but I actually do cherish my privacy. Especially if it’s two in the morning. Since this issue’s so high on the list, I used it to decide which Promaster to purchase. The 1500/2500/3500 rigs come in a few configurations. The three most popular are:

tons of windows along the side (almost like a school bus)

only two windows at the back

no windows, save the windshield itself

I picked the second option with tinted windows. It almost solved the issue, but I still needed curtains. Here’s the problem. Custom Promaster shades – custom Promaster anything – are impossible to find.

Here’s what I did instead.

I took a sedan sunshade and cut it in half. It’s the perfect size for each rear window. I sewed standard black fabric on the outward facing side. On the other, a mishmash of fat quarter fabric. Basically, I created a massive envelope for each half of the sunshade, thus providing myself with heat reflection and privacy.

These ain’t Reflectix, mate.

If you’re into the RV/Van thing, you know about Reflectix. This ain’t that. Not at all. These sunshades can’t be “pushed” into service. They must be attached to the van by other means. I first tried magnets, but Ram windows have these absolutely annoying and really weird humps, requiring a million micro magnets. I tabled the idea before reaching the house, turned around and exchanged the things for industrial strength Velcro. Easy on, easy off. I’ll take it.

Total time:
4 hours – I backstitched them hand. Have a sewing machine? You can cut that time to about 2 minutes.